The newspaper on Monday said it based its endorsement for Cuomo "in the hope, if not necessarily the full expectation'' that Cuomo would become the strong leader that New York state needs.

But the Post said it isn't clear whether anyone currently running for the state's highest office "is fully up to the task.''

It called Cuomo's Republican opponent, Carl Paladino, a man "with a towering temper and a well-documented contempt for the truth.''

The Post said Cuomo was an effective attorney general who understood "the underlying issues of Albany's ingrained dysfunction and the urgent need to address them.''

Cuomo and Paladino have been busy readying themselves for tonight's televised debate as their surrogates continued to snipe away.

Cuomo's campaign released a new TV ad claiming that Paladino would take away rights and that victims of rape and incest would be denied abortions that are now legal.

Paladino has said he personally opposes abortion as a Catholic. He has said that he would advocate against abortion, but changing abortion laws is not a legislative priority. He said abortion isn't an issue in the campaign but is a way for Democrats to energize their base.

Abortion rights in New York are protected by a supermajority in the Democrat-led Assembly.

Meantime, a New York Times poll finds that Cuomo has a big lead over Paladino, drawing 59-percent of likely voters to 24-percent for his opponent.